Kivumbi was insanely proud of herself. She'd caught a fish! A nice, big, juicy fish! It was her first catch, all her attempts before had ended in being more drenched than if she'd just gone swimming. And usually had someone chuckling at her failure. But this time...oh no. This time, she'd succeeded. And oh would the victory be tasty~ She was tempted to show Vuai her catch but...well, he was on duty. and she was HUNGRY. Catching the bugger had taken a lot of work.
So the dust-and-sand colored lioness flopped down in the shade of a large rock formation, and proceeded to try and enjoy her fish.
Tefu was just about ready to leave. He’d spent some time near the beach, though careful not to go far into the local pride’s territory, and had concluded it probably wasn’t the place he was meant to reach. Aside from being really neat. He hadn’t eaten much, not exactly equipped to find food in such a place, but the striped male had never been one to eat a lot anyways.
But he just wanted to linger a little more before he started on his way. After all, it wasn’t every day that you stumbled upon the ocean. He was sure some lions would never even see it in their lifetime! So he kept walking along, occasionally stepping onto sand, but glad when he found rocks to walk on. But he wasn’t really paying attention to anywhere but the ocean and where he was stepping, so he was coming very close to Kivumbi when he finally noticed her.
And they were close enough that it seemed awkward to just walk past and ignore her. Oh, poor Tefu. Ever the awkward kid. “Uuuh. Hi. Sorry.”
Kivumbi blinked, a bite of fish in her mouth. And tried to swallow it quickly. OH. Eep...she definitely didn't want to be rude! Food swallowed, she smiled at the male. "Hi. And don't worry. I didn't even hear you coming!" She giggled sheepishly. "Are you new here?" She'd gotten a good handle on who all was in the pride, and he didn't look even half-familiar. If he was new...well, she could be helpful! She'd been new once, herself.
And if he wasn't....ooooooh, she would be so embarrassed if he wasn't.
He offered her a friendly smile, because it didn’t seem like a good way to go about meeting people looking uncertain or uncomfortable. And he was a friendly enough guy! But strangers were a little odd for him. That’s why they were strangers. It was in the name. “Oh, well, still. Sorry I interrupted your meal!” Maybe he could have just walked by unnoticed. But how anti-social would that have been?
“No, I’m not new here. I’m just a rogue.” A pause. Oops. “Uh, well, I’m not trying to invade your pride lands or anything! I’ve been travelling and just stopped to rest for a couple of days.” He’d leave out that he was looking for something. And that he didn’t even know what the something was.
Kivumbi chuckled. "It's okay. I think. I mean...not like you're trying to steal it! Though if you're hungry, I could share." She grinned. "My first caught fish." She was obviously very proud of that fact, any nervousness that might have been there vanishing with that statement.
"A rogue? I used to be one. It does take a lot out of you, traveling all around. And if you've gotten this far in, I don't think you're a threat. After all, the guards wouldn't have let you in, otherwise." She waved to the ocean. "It'd be a shame to deny you this beautiful view too."
It was a little heartwarming that this lioness was willing to share her fish with him, even though she didn’t know him! “No, I’m fine, thanks.” He was a little hungry, now that he had food in front of him, but he’d rather get something for himself. “That’s great! It’s a good big fish.” He smiled at her. He was sure he wouldn’t enjoy fishing in the ocean, and quietly admired this pride that was able to do this.
“You were a rogue too? Well, it’s a good thing you found a home you like.” Tefu had been a pride lion, but now he was following some little vision he’d had. So he had left, and he missed home already! He hoped he’d like wherever life was taking him. “It is a fantastic view.” He mused, looking out to the ocean and sitting down. He could chat a bit, he supposed. “Sorry, my name is Tefu’fuadi. Nice to meet you!”
Kivumbi nodded, moving the fish aside a bit, so it hopefully wouldn't taunt him. Even if he said he wasn't hungry...well, you could never be sure when one was just being polite. "It is. I'm hoping one of my friends believes me on it later. Since...I usually rather fail at fishing. I wanted to show it to him, but he's out on the borders, being all guard-y." She shrugged, then nodded.
"Yeah. I grew up in a pride originally...but I didn't fit in there. Kinda...got kicked out, when I failed my 'rite of passage'. Wandered around for a while and now...I'm home. It's a very nice home, indeed." She took a deep breath, enjoying the smell of the sea. "Ah! Nice to meet you, Tefu'fuadi! I'm Kivumbi."
He frowned slightly at this. Maybe she should find a way to prove it. Uuuh. “Well, you could keep its skeleton.” He suggested. If her friend didn’t believe she had caught such a big fish, she could maybe prove it to him! Not that the skeleton would show how much meat the fish had, but at least how big it was. “Then you could show it to him.” Or keep it as a souvenir! If it didn’t smell too awful. Fish often smelled kind of bad.
It must be a little sad to be kicked out of your pride for failing a rite of passage, but he opted against offering condolences because she didn’t seem to upset about it. Besides, she might not have ended up here, and she clearly liked it. He smiled and nodded to acknowledge her introduction. “So, how long have you been here, Kivumbi?” Might as well make a little small talk before leaving. Tefu might be procrastinating a bit.
That did sound like a good idea. She nodded, with a distinct look of 'why didn't I think of that'. But she didn't seem annoyed by it. "Thank you! I think I'll do that!" Vuai would HAVE to believe her, if she showed him the skeleton.
The lioness thought a moment, trying to figure out just how long she'd been there. "Huh...I think...three seasons, at the least. Maybe four? Long enough that I've adjusted rather well. Like...I've gotten very good at swimming now! And walking in thesand isn't hard."
Tefu was glad he could help this lioness a little, even though it was a rather trivial matter. It was always good to let your friends know when you did something cool! And if her friend couldn’t doubt her, it’d spare her some annoyance. And if her friend didn’t like bragging, well, too bad for him. “You’re welcome!” He didn’t sound too proud or smug, though. It had been a pretty simple idea, after all.
He nodded, listening to her politely, but not helping a small chuckle at the talk about walking on sand. “Yeah, the sand.” He laughed a bit, looking down at his foot and wriggling his toes. Tefu didn’t think he’d miss the sand very much. And he liked fresh water more than salt. “I’m not sure I’d ever be able to get used to it.” He enjoyed the beach, but it wasn’t a place he imagined calling home.
Kivumbi nodded. "Well...this isn't the home for everyone." She shifted a bit. "I'm certain you'll find a good place for you, though. Someplace safe and sound, where you feel like you belong. That's how I knew this place was home for me. For the first time in my life...I looked at the ocean, and felt like I belonged there, looking at it. And that I could fall asleep to that feeling, and it would still be there when I woke."
He smiled, glancing out to the ocean and for a moment, pretending he felt the same way about this place. That he adored the softness beneath his paws, or he could watch the waves and that would be enough to make him feel safe, connected to the earth and not just floating about aimlessly. “That’s really nice.” He smiled. He briefly wondered if he’d ever felt that way at home, and he supposed he kind of did. It had always felt safe to him. But somehow a little different. It didn’t call to him. His family did, but not the place itself.
“Yeah…I’m sure I’ll find a place for me someday. In the meantime, I’ll just visit other people’s places.”
Kivumbi giggled. "That sounds like a wonderful idea. It might give you a good idea of what you're looking for, too. What kinda of places call to you best." She smiled at him. "And perhaps it may even be a creature that makes something home for you, instead of the place itself."
He laughed a bit, because she was laughing, so it only felt normal he should do it a bit too. He paused for a second when she mentioned someone holding him to a place, rather than the place itself. Love. It was always an odd topic for him, even though it shouldn’t be. In fact, it should be easy for him. Perhaps it was mostly just amusing, because when he thought of love, all that came to mind was his mother, the very embodiment of it. A little odd. “Yeah…” But Tefu did want to fall in love someday. He sat there for a few more moments, looking out at the sea and thinking a bit, before he stood up.
“Well, I think I better go now. I wouldn’t want to be a bother. And, you need to eat your fish. And show off to your friend.” Tefu offered her a small grin. “It was a pleasure meeting you, Kivumbi! Thanks for the talk.” He smiled, and decided to wait a bit before actually leaving, just because running off all of the sudden seemed a bit rude. He’d at least give her a chance to say bye (or acknowledge his own goodbye).
Kivumbi blinked, then nodded at him. "It was a pleasure meeting you, Tefu'fuali! I wish you clear skies and friendly faces on your journeys!" Those were the sort of things she knew she had wanted while being a rogue. Perhaps the well-wishes would do him some good.
He nodded and dipped his head. “Thank you. Good bye, I hope you have a nice life here at the beach!” And if she loved it this much, he was sure she would! Unless something on the outside happened, there didn’t seem to be a reason not to. Tefu offered the female one more brief smile before turning and making his way from the rocks, heading for nowhere in particular, but away from the beach.
